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[USN-8588-1] Gawk vulnerabilities

Posted on 22 July 2026
Ubuntu Security

==========================================================================Ubuntu Security Notice USN-8588-1
July 22, 2026

gawk vulnerabilities
==========================================================================
A security issue affects these releases of Ubuntu and its derivatives:

- Ubuntu 26.04 LTS
- Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
- Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
- Ubuntu 20.04 LTS
- Ubuntu 18.04 LTS
- Ubuntu 16.04 LTS
- Ubuntu 14.04 LTS

Summary:

Several security issues were fixed in Gawk.

Software Description:
- gawk: GNU implementation of AWK

Details:

It was discovered that Gawk incorrectly handled memory when processing
input using the getline redirection. An attacker could possibly use
this issue to cause a denial of service. (CVE-2026-40467)

It was discovered that Gawk incorrectly handled certain integer
calculations when allocating memory. An attacker could possibly use
this issue to cause a denial of service or overwrite heap memory with
attacker-controlled data. (CVE-2026-40468)

It was discovered that Gawk incorrectly handled certain integer
calculations when performing substitutions. An attacker could possibly
use this issue to cause a denial of service. (CVE-2026-40469)

It was discovered that Gawk incorrectly handled memory when reading
directory entries. An attacker could possibly use this issue to cause
a denial of service or execute arbitrary code. This issue only affected
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS. (CVE-2026-40553)

Update instructions:

The problem can be corrected by updating your system to the following
package versions:

Ubuntu 26.04 LTS
gawk 1:5.3.2-1ubuntu1.1

Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
gawk 1:5.2.1-2ubuntu0.1

Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
gawk 1:5.1.0-1ubuntu0.2

Ubuntu 20.04 LTS
gawk 1:5.0.1+dfsg-1ubuntu0.1+esm1
Available with Ubuntu Pro

Ubuntu 18.04 LTS
gawk 1:4.1.4+dfsg-1ubuntu0.1~esm2
Available with Ubuntu Pro

Ubuntu 16.04 LTS
gawk 1:4.1.3+dfsg-0.1ubuntu0.1~esm2
Available with Ubuntu Pro

Ubuntu 14.04 LTS
gawk 1:4.0.1+dfsg-2.1ubuntu2+esm2
Available with Ubuntu Pro

In general, a standard system update will make all the necessary changes.

References:
https://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-8588-1
CVE-2026-40467, CVE-2026-40468, CVE-2026-40469, CVE-2026-40553

Package Information:
https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/gawk/1:5.3.2-1ubuntu1.1
https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/gawk/1:5.2.1-2ubuntu0.1
https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/gawk/1:5.1.0-1ubuntu0.2

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